Ladenburg lures vets to focus on Gen X/Y

Ladenburg Thalmann Financial Services Inc. of Miami continued its expansion into the independent-contractor broker-dealer industry with today’s announcement that it snagged two managers from Ameriprise Financial Inc. of Minneapolis. Ted Jenkin and Kile Lewis had a combined 30 years experience with Ameriprise, formerly American Express Financial Advisors. Both had deep roots into the Ameriprise branch system. Mr. Jenkin was a group vice president with Ameriprise, where he led more than 700 reps and advisers. Mr. Lewis was a field vice president and managed offices in Ohio, Georgia and Pennsylvania. The two executives will run their own firm, the newly formed oXYGen Financial Inc. of Alpharetta, Ga., which will focus on clients between 25 and 45 years old. “The rest of the industry is focused on baby boomers,” said Mr. Jenkin. “This is a different segment of the marketplace from Ameriprise.” Mr. Jenkin declined to comment about any non-compete agreement with Ameriprise. He also declined to comment on whether he and Mr. Lewis had received a signing bonus to join Ladenburg. Ladenburg Thalmann has been on an acquisition tear in the past year, expanding both its independent broker-dealer network and its investment-banking platform. Last fall, Ladenburg entered the independent market by acquiring Investacorp, an independent broker-dealer based in Miami Lakes, Fla. Last month, it completed its acquisition of Triad Advisors Inc. of Norcross, Ga. And in May, Ladenburg completed its purchase of Punk Ziegel & Co. LP, a specialty investment bank based in New York. Mr. Jenkin and Mr. Lewis left Ameriprise and became affiliated with Investacorp last Thursday. For the full report, see the Sept. 8 issue of InvestmentNews.